Re: [OSGeo Oceania] OO board meeting minutes, 10 May
HI Alex, Elisa, all
Page 17 of the FOSS4G RfP document outlines how to ask for seed funding
from OSGeo [1]. The OSGeo conference committee are more than happy to have
a discussion, as is the OSGeo board. In OSGeo Oceania's case there would be
a discussion about financial risks (you have money in the bank, why ask for
$$ from the global community? - to which OO could lay out its current
forecasts and say OK yes now, next year is unknown and we want to ensure
OSGeo Oceania stays alive and the conference is doable at the same time)
The concept of OSGeo acting as a seed fund supplier is documented as
raised, so it doesn't need deeper digging. Here's the quote again:
"Possible to ask OSGeo to be the backer instead of OO? Alex: risk of losing
money is basically zero, the bigger risk is that we split the community and
upset those who have worked on this."
I understand that minutes don't capture nuance well, that was the point of
this line of questioning - and yes, I did ask around a little bit before
writing anything out. I also think it's pretty natural to read the
statement above and think.. hmm. why is this being said / recorded? It
seems completely normal that OSGeo Oceania provide organisational / legal
backing ("fiscal sponsorship") - which was one of the core "whys" of OO to
begin with. And the finance concerns raised in the minutes could be reduced
by asking the global community for support - which is core to OSGeo's
reason for being.
A third path not yet seen is removing some financial concerns by OO
committing some of the seed funding, and asking OSGeo for the balance -
that way giving OO room to consider the scale of its contribution as
unknown unknowns in mid 2024 become more known as 2025 approaches. There
are really no such absolutes as "this way or else", it's all a discussion
and every FOSS4G has different needs - the core criteria is being proactive
about understanding needs as early as possible and being open / upfront
about how things are working out. So maybe an idea for OO / AKL to keep in
the pocket as things progress...
All the best,
Adam
[1]
https://www.osgeo.org/wp-content/uploads/FOSS4G2025-request-for-proposal.pdf
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Re: [OSGeo Oceania] OO board meeting minutes, 10 May
Hi Alex, all The specific statements of interest are these: --- ● Q: Possible to ask OSGeo to be the backer instead of OO? Alex: risk of losing money is basically zero, the bigger risk is that we split the community and upset those who have worked on this. Q: How would the community be split? Alex: If OO chooses not to support, the LOC would have to find support elsewhere, so OO would not participate --- In a robust and cohsesive community, what specific risks about splitting the community do the Auckland bid committee (AKLBC) see in asking OSGeo to seed fund a global FOSS4G in the region? And: why does the AKLBC think that asking OSGeo to seed the event (rather than OO) would mean OO would not participate? In the context of a global FOSS4G in the region it seems straightforward that no matter who provided the seed funding, OO would act as a bank and provide other support - without needing to take on the whole financial risk. If any other bid committee members want to add some insight, that'd be great! A global FOSS4G is a huge undertaking, important for both regional and global communities - so we need to be really clear in the communtiy about where the kind of statements made at the last board meeting come from; and work as a community toward resolution. Thanks, Adam On Mon, May 20, 2024, 14:22 Alex Leith wrote: > Hey John and Adam > > I raised the potential for a split in the community, only as a risk, not > as a threat or a potential or imminent thing. > > My view is that we’re a coherent and broadly cohesive group. My point was > only that if we (OSGeo Oceania's Board) didn’t support this initiative, > that other paths might be pursued. > ___ Oceania mailing list Oceania@lists.osgeo.org https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
Re: [OSGeo Oceania] OO board meeting minutes, 10 May
Hi John, all Thanks for sharing the meeting minutes, looked like a big discussion! Is the Auckland LOC able to provide background / context to comments that the community would be split / OSGeo Oceania would not participate if the Auckland LOC sought seed funding from OSGeo? Those are quite strong statements. My experience as a director of OSGeo suggests that the global org is very supportive of seed funding it's primary global gathering - and open to negotiation on how profits are distributed (if that was the issue) It's important for the community to understand the context and discuss any perceived or real perceptions about it's cohesiveness. Thanks, Adam [1] https://www.osgeo.org/wp-content/uploads/FOSS4G2025-request-for-proposal.pdf ___ Oceania mailing list Oceania@lists.osgeo.org https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
Re: [OSGeo Oceania] 2024 OSGeo Oceania board objectives
Hi John, everyone I didn't have the ability to comment on the document, so here goes: - create an osgeo.org gitlab instance and move all this stuff there so we can interact via issues:D (that one is half serious... I know the community doesn't necessarily want to interact with git ) I have just a few thoughts on a couple of areas: Comms: heavy plus to more open comms. In the news OSgeo just got a discourse instance running, maybe check in to see if a channel can be run there? OR set up an OO-administered discourse instance. Finances Paid memberships should be avoided, even if they're optional. It'll set up an expectation of service which I think is long-term harmful to OO. OO really needs to hold strongly to its current power to make decisions in the interests of the whole community. Direct sponsorship of OO is a good option to explore Education A question really: is OO planning to deliver education / training? is this more oriented at support, eg a grant program? Thanks, Adam On Sun, 7 Jan 2024 at 21:45, John Bryant via Oceania < oceania@lists.osgeo.org> wrote: > Hi all, the OSGeo Oceania board is meeting this Friday 12 Jan, and one of > the agenda items is setting some objectives for 2024. > > There was some interesting input from the audience at FOSS4G SotM Oceania > in October, which helps guide this exercise, but we would love to get > further input from the community. What do you think we should focus on in > the coming year? And of course, what would you be willing to put your own > time and energy into? > > Here's what we've got so far (work in progress): > https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L0l_I15T-zm4LyLuwePq6ZfgS3OL9LEm > > Obviously we need to pick our battles and not every idea will be a focal > point, but it will be helpful to hear what's important to you. > > Your thoughts? > > Cheers > John > ___ > Oceania mailing list > Oceania@lists.osgeo.org > https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania > ___ Oceania mailing list Oceania@lists.osgeo.org https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
Re: [OSGeo Oceania] [FOSS4G-Oceania] FOSS4G Global: Call for Oceania Committee
Hi Tony I reached out to a cartography society in 2018 and was more or less rebuffed. Never hurts to try again though! Maybe a different name on the outreach is all it needs... Adam On Tue, Dec 12, 2023, 13:36 Tony Batistich via Oceania < oceania@lists.osgeo.org> wrote: > Has anyone ever considered combining one of the Oceania, FOSS4G or SoTM > conferences with the cartography societies' conferences in Australia or > New Zealand?Or are they chalk and cheese? > > I can see a crossover in interest and maybe one providing experiences for > the other. > > Tony Batistich > > On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 2:38 PM Andrew Harvey via Oceania < > oceania@lists.osgeo.org> wrote: > >> Hi Alex, >> >> There was a back to back FOSS4G and SotM in 2022 in Firenze, Italy, and >> another one proposed for 2023 (that didn't go ahead). >> >> I don't know when the Call for Venues will be open for SotM 2025 but >> previously it's been between March and June the year prior. >> >> We are certainly overdue for a global SotM conference in this region, and >> I would be ecstatic to see it happen. >> >> -- >> Andrew Harvey >> >> On Fri, 8 Dec 2023, at 4:07 PM, Alex Leith via FOSS4G-Oceania wrote: >> >> Hey Folks >> >> A group of us from this year's Auckland conference are interested in >> putting a bid together to host the 2025 global FOSS4G event, probably in >> conjunction with the global SotM conference. >> >> The call for proposals is about to be announced, and the letter of intent >> is likely to be due by the 8th of January, 2024, which means that we have >> to move fairly quickly to take this initial step. The Auckland University >> of Technology have already indicated they can provide the venue. >> >> This is obviously a massive commitment and not something we would enter >> into lightly, but I think it would be wonderful to welcome the global open >> geospatial community to our corner of the Earth, and I hope that you agree! >> >> So, the call to action is to get in touch if you'd like to join the >> committee that is putting the bid together. >> >> Please let me know if you'd like to be involved, and we'll work together >> to get a letter of intent together. >> >> Kind regards, >> >> Alex >> >> -- >> *Alex Leith* >> m: +61 419 189 050 >> https://auspatious.com >> ___ >> FOSS4G-Oceania mailing list >> foss4g-ocea...@lists.osgeo.org >> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/foss4g-oceania >> >> >> ___ >> Oceania mailing list >> Oceania@lists.osgeo.org >> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania >> > ___ > Oceania mailing list > Oceania@lists.osgeo.org > https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania > ___ Oceania mailing list Oceania@lists.osgeo.org https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
